Documenti di Didattica
Documenti di Professioni
Documenti di Cultura
Joe Schall
Giles Writer-in-Residence
Writing Tutor
My Background
B.S., Juniata College, Huntingdon, PA, English Education
M.A., Penn State, English, Fiction Writing Emphasis
Taught five years at a home for juvenile delinquents
Writing tutor for 18 years at Penn State
Publications range from short stories to style guides, including
Writing Recommendation Letters: A Faculty Handbook
Overview
Take an historical look at recommendation letter
writing
Discuss common ethical and practical dilemmas
for faculty letter writers
Consider a few student cases and how to respond
to them
Discuss ten ideas for improving writing in
recommendation letters
Student Bloopers . . .
If someone is a vegetable, it is fruitless to try to keep him alive
on a machine.
If you smell an odorless gas, it is probably carbon monoxide.
Mushrooms always grow in damp places and so they look like
umbrellas.
If I could go back to Christs time, I would hear him speak and
think, Wow! His words are almost exactly as they appear
in the Bible!
In the 1920s, no one intelligent believed in God.
I dont see the big deal about Shakespeare; in fact, he used a lot
of clichs.
Romeo cannot really be blamed for Ophelias death.
Faculty Bloopers . . .
I imagine that he would be a good candidate for the
Rhodes Scholarship.
Her last years in my laboratory were impacted by
serious health problems that have fortunately gone
awayshe had really debilitating problems with a
herniated disk that apparently was a paraneoplastic
phenomenon that went away once an early carcinoma
of the left ovary was identified and removed.
For a single mom with an inner city background, she
has done an incredible job at our small liberal arts
college, which has few African-Americans.
Visibility: The most often mentioned behavioral characteristic was visibility. Superstars
were observed to be . . .
Willingness to Work Hard: The next most often mentioned quality was that they were
hard working. It is important to point out that the superstars were . . .
True Interest in Research: Many students preparing for graduate school in clinical
psychology may assume that clinical and counseling skills will be much more valuable
to them in graduate school than their ability to perform research. However, potential
clinicians should . . .
Development of Relationship with a Mentor: From the time they entered graduate
school almost all superstars attached themselves to one or two faculty members with
whom they continued to work during the course of their training. Faculty reported . . .
Work Ethic
Temperament
Vigor
imaginative
insightful
intelligent
discerning
knowledgeable
original
analytical
far-sighted
logical
skilled
astute
adaptable
resourceful
self-reliant
thoughtful
judicious
perceptive
inquisitive
bright
precise
persistent
resolute
serious
committed
orderly
prompt
efficient
responsible
persevering
sure
alert
businesslike
thorough
confident
tenacious
hard-working
methodical
determined
good-natured
likeable
considerate
affable
patient
tolerant
composed
restrained
earnest
bold
gregarious
polished
adventurous
team-oriented
spirited
sociable
open
frank
assured
active
energetic
self-starting
enthusiastic
vigorous
pace-setting
eager
diligent
zealous
fast
productive
enterprising
certain
speedy
self-driving
independent
ambitious
on-the-ball
industrious